Should you rely on geothermal gradients?
When I start a new project, I commonly get this question: “What is the geothermal gradient in this area?” The question stems from an underlying assumption that the gradient provides…
Geology & Geophysics
Permeability multipliers: allies or foes?
3D reservoir modelling is built on 2 pillars: the static and dynamic reservoir models. The static model quantifies the architecture of the reservoir and the volume in place at initial…
Geomodelling for CCS, a bridge too far?
Traditionally, geomodels are built in a simplistic fashion, taking into account the inherent degree of uncertainty in the input data. Attempting to accurately depict an unseen geological object, often multiple…
“We should have looked at that regional seismic line with more care before signing off on a plan for drilling”
We, geologists, have the primacy of observation of rocks dinned into us during our earliest work in the field, with that message then reinforced by later events in our lives.…
Bouma and Tybalt
The Bouma sequence, proposed by Arnold Bouma, has been a cornerstone in the interpretation of turbidites and high-density sediment currents since its publication in 1962. The Bouma sequence is a…
Can a seal fail?
A seal is a rock that has a higher capillary entry pressure relative to other adjacent rocks. The higher the contrast, the greater the hydrocarbon column it can hold. The…
Don’t forget to look deeper
As oil and gas geoscientists, we often focus on the reservoir we are targeting. Seldom do we consider what might be happening deeper, especially in basement rocks. However, what happens…
Not as straight as we sometimes think
Of course, field observations have long shown that faults are not the perfectly straight lines we often see in schematic cross-sections. However, subsurface data do not always allow the detailed…
Unlocking Permian and Carboniferous petroleum systems of the Southern North Sea
The northern part of the UK Southern North Sea (SNS) and the adjacent Mid North Sea High (MNSH) have seen a recent revival when it comes to exploration activity, with…
Have bottom currents defined the Golden Lane and determined updip prospectivity?
Since the prolific Cretaceous oil kitchen of the Canje Formation offshore Guyana was demonstrated by Lawrence and Bray (1989), an anomaly related to the lack of exploration encouragement away from…
Seismic velocity – A strong identifier of gas prospects
P-wave velocity (Vp) is an essential parameter for constructing seismic velocity models for geophysical exploration data, and porosity is the single most important factor affecting it, along with the type of…
Are outcrops the key to unlock the CCUS potential in the Middle East?
The Middle East region is under the spotlight of the carbon-neutral worldwide ambition. COP28 was a testimony of the effort put by the regional energy powerhouses. What if the success…